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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. firm — decided
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. root — the cause
  6. firm — a company
  7. firm — steady
  8. wind — moving air
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. root — of a word
  11. shower — rain
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. march — the month
  15. shower — to wash
  16. march — the month
  17. root — of a plant
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. season — of the year
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. season — in sport
  22. march — music
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — to turn a key

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com